I L-O-V-E Fall.....

This is my favorite time of year....always has been. Maybe it's because my birthday falls in October. And of course we start to have cooler weather. Then there are all the activities going on from now through the end of the year. All the lights, etc. Having a wonderful winter break (one of the good things about working in education). January hits and it's somewhat of a let down. But for now I can enjoy today and the coming weeks. So with that I saw Happy Fall to All!!

Happy Halloweenie.....

Triple-whammy today! Halloween......Friday.....and Payday!!!!! Oh and for me I guess it's really a quadruple whammy since my vacation begins at 5p today. Lots of work to get done today....Rocky Horror tonight (I'll try to sneak some pics if possible)....LOTS to get done over the weekend then Monday ON THE ROAD!!!!! I can feel myself cruising the Ozark roads now. Like the song says...'You can get there from anywhere, when you're going in your head'.

The Big City Comes to Wharton...

Comments....

Somehow I missed the comment below...it was left on my blog a week or so ago by a dear friend:

So. About a week or two ago on Sam Malone's morning show, somehow the topic turned to women who are obsessed with scrapbooking.One lady called in and said she and her friends will rent a ballroom at a hotel, bring their supplies and sleeping bags and do an all nighter and sometimes don't even go to sleep! Who knew?

I admit to doing one all-nighter. It was early in my scrapping 'career' and it did not involve any cost--other than purchases I may have made that night (and I'm sure there were some). Besides, who needs to rent a ballroom when you have good friends with a great stash of supplies. Renting a place would take away from funds that can be used for buying more scrap goodies!

First Chili of the Fall

Dizzy....

...my head is spinning...I'm so dizzy........

Or at least I was yesterday. Thank goodness it seems to have subsided today. Still a little off kilter but better than yesterday. Still so much to do before the end of the week..........

And Just In Case You Think I've Forgotten....

...about Scraptober....I haven't! I'm still watching blogs for posts and making my notes.

Happy last week of Scraptober.

Let's do the Time Warp again.....

Come Friday night, the Plaza Theatre in Wharton will be showing.....wait for it......wait for it......ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW at midnight! I'm thinking some in this town will be in for quite a shock. Me? I think it'll be great fun to see this cult classic once again with good friends. We're even talking about dressing in character since it is Halloween--nothing too outrageous....just as the party-goers in the Time Warp dance scene.... If you don't recall, go to Utube and search for Rocky Horrow Picture Show--there are tons of videos!

Let's do the Time Warp again......it's just jump to the left, then a step to the riiiiiight.........

Capital T-i-r-e-d

That would best describe me at the moment. Whew! What a weekend. Basically did nothing Friday night but hit the ground running Saturday morning and just stopped to take a breath. Make-n-takes at By Design and lunch and a little shopping with Robin. RUN home and change for a night out at the Stafford Center--dinner at Pappsitos first (yum) then double bill of the Triumps and Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone. Home just before midnight and off to bed. Up Sunday morning for a quick Whataburger breakfast and a few chores before heading over to Country Peddler. I am afraid to figure the total of what I spent (but what a fun day with the girls). After Peddler it was off to Target for a few items, grab a bite to eat then home to do a few more chores. Now that I've had a shower I can finally relax. Why do Mondays come so quickly??

CREATE!

Supporting Galveston's 1894 Grand Opera House

On the cusp...

of the weekend...YIPPEEEE. This week seems to have gone on forever...and I'm guessing today will feel pretty much the same--darn it. This weekend: Country Peddler, Holiday Make-n-Take at By Design, Herman's Hermits at the Stafford Center.....oh and I have to get halloween treats finished and plan for vacation. Busy, busy, busy....just hope my energy holds out!

Baby got new shoes....

Bought two new tires yesterday for the car.....preparing for that Branson trip.

In other miscellaneous news it appears the weather might actually finally be getting cooler--yeah. And the approaching weekend will be packed.

Creating....

...working on Halloween treats.....

Ritual...

Thought my blog was a bit too wordy and wanted to post a pic or two....here's my ritual--every other night....

Slacking...

Yep....I've been slacking--in a lot of areas. I haven't kept up with the Scraptober challenge--shame on me. I plan to get back on track with that tonight if it kills me! I have a great prize in mind so if you've been playing along please continue...or catch up.

In the same vein of Scraptober, I have some projects I've been needing and wanting to do. Gotta get in gear on those. Had intentions of doing that all weekend...and ended up with squat there. But I did get some much needed rest (could still use more--still learning to juggle and deal).

I have big aspirations for the week. LOTS to get done and I am determined. The approaching weekend (yes, I know it's only Monday) will be a busy one. Holiday Make-n-Takes at By Design Saturday morning and Hermin's Hermits Saturday night plus fitting in Country Peddler sometime and getting Halloween treats done. Oh and planning for a Branson run the first week of November.

I'll try to post some pictures later....toodles.

What are the chances??

Here on Friday eve it occurs to me that I only have one must attend event this weekend. How can that be? All the weekends of October thus far (okay so that's only two) have been jam-packed. So this leads me to the question; What are the chances that I'll actually stay home and get things done around here? Do some cleaning/organizing. Some scrapping. Maybe even work on some Christmas gifts (granted I need to get Halloween treats done first). Just the prospect of lounging around home and being domestic makes me giddy!

Go or No Go....

I cannot make the final decison about going to Branson this fall. I haven't been since last year and it's that time of year and I'm getting the itch. I'm close to taking the plunge......cause I do love it up there, and I do miss it...and by the time I get to go they'll be all decorated for and celebrating Christmas.......now to make arrangements!!

Can't catch up...

I just can't seem to catch up. October is a busy month and I can't believe it's already half over! The weekends have been packed and the weeks just as busy. By the time I get home I have zero energy so I get nothing accomplished--and I have all these things I want to get done.

I need to make a run to the store to pick up a few items and get ready for Boss' Day tomorrow. I'll spend my evening baking for that and who knows what else.


How To Give Your Pet A Pill...

How To Give Your Cat A Pill:
1. Pick up cat and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a baby. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat opens mouth, pop pill into mouth. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.
2. Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm and repeat process.
3. Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.
4. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm, holding rear paws tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.
5. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call spouse from garden.
6. Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and rub cat's throat vigorously.
7. Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered figurines and vases from hearth and set to one side for gluing later.
8. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head just visible from below armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw, force mouth open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.
9. Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans, drink 1 beer to take taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet with cold water and soap.
10. Retrieve cat from neighbor's shed. Get another pill. Open another beer. Place cat in cupboard, and close door onto neck, to leave head showing. Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic band.
11. Fetch screwdriver from garage and put cupboard door back on hinges. Drink beer. Fetch bottle of scotch. Pour shot, drink. Apply cold compress to cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot. Apply whiskey compress to cheek to disinfect. Toss back another shot. Throw Tee shirt away and fetch new one from bedroom.
12. Call fire department to retrieve the damn cat from across the road. Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.
13. Tie the little bastard's front paws to rear paws with garden twine and bind tightly to leg of dining table, find heavy-duty pruning gloves from shed. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of filet steak. Be rough about it. Hold head vertically and pour 2 pints of water down throat to wash pill down.
14. Consume remainder of scotch. Get spouse to drive you to the emergency room, sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill remnants from right eye. Call furniture shop on way home to order new table.
15. Arrange for ASPCA to collect mutant cat from hell and call local pet shop to see if they have any hamsters.


How To Give Your Dog A Pill
1. Wrap it in bacon.
2. Toss it in the air.

Monday, Monday....

...comes way too fast. Saturday was busy, busy, busy and yesterday I was lazy, lazy, lazy. Although, I did make a couple of cards last night with some of my new toys. Guess tonight I'll be trying to get myself motivated to accomplish something!

Where has the day gone???

I would like to say I've done a lot to but to do so would be a lie. I made it HEB and Walmart and have done a couple loads of laundry but that's it. I've been trying to motivate myself all day to play with my new toys I picked up at the scrap and stamp expo yesterday. Thus far I've only managed to print out a few photos. Maybe I'll manage to do something before bed.

I think staying out late last night at the Relay for Life is what did me in. It was for a good cause and I got some nice pics (see below). It was somewhat appropriate to cap off my day there since yesterday was five years to the day that mom passed. I even spent some time at the end of the day (just before midnight) with some of the ladies from Hospice who definitely remember mom.

Relay for Life....

Scraptober continues....

Yes, I've been away...but the Scraptober challenge still continues!

I'm Back!!!

I am home again....early on a Friday afternoon so I can start to relax (maybe). I now need to unpack and do laundry and some grocery shopping wouldn't hurt since I've not done any in about two weeks (why bother why I knew I was leaving town).

I picked up my car this afternoon. It was fun driving the loaner (of which I forgot to take a picture--believe it or not) but it's nice to have my car back...and it's clean inside and out! The body work looks great--you'd never know someone put a huge dent in it. Now to deal with the insurance company to get reimbursed for the full cost of the loaner--which was nearly $300 more than they initially covered. Nice thing is that even though the final repair bill was more than the initial estimate and the check I received, the body shop will get the balance from the insurance company.

Now for the oddities of the last few days. I say odditites because this is the first conference I've attended since April of 2007 in Austin and since all the turmoil in the student loan industry. There were so many missing due to the company downsizings and closures. So many familiar faces, gone. The party atmosphere was no where near what it used to be and other than dinner last night, I never left the hotel. And even then it wasn't one of the huge dinners with lots of colleagues--just my coworkers. The major oddity of the evening....I was not only in my room before 10p, I was in bed by 10:30p.......

Away...

I'll be away for a couple days attending a conference but I'll be back on Friday and ready to get back to scrapping. Have a good rest of the week!

I want to create....

...it's dark and rainy this morning and though still sleepy, it puts me in the mood to create. Problem is I have work and lots to get done since I'll be out the rest of the week. I won't even have time to create this evening when I go home. I need to finish picking up my place and figure out what clothes I'm taking and pack. I guess the good thing is that it's only Houston and if I end up taking my own vehicle I can always run home if I need something. There's also the fact that we'll be at the Westin Galleria so I can run over to Macys if I feel the need for something new (if I can find something). Regardless, it's going to be a busy, busy day...

Loophole...

Someone who shall remain nameless (that has yet to participate in the Scraptober challenge) is looking for a loophole. The question was: Does 20 halloween cards and 2 boss' day cards count as 22 days?

...the answer was: only if one per day is done and that's not advisable as I am the judge and that will take away from options for displaying creativity.....nice try though!

Monday, Monday....

...came too fast. It was a busy, but great, weekend. Naturally many things went undone and Monday morning arrived too quickly. Two days at home then off to TASFAA (annual state financial aid meeting). Whahoo...we're going to Houston this year (hear the excitement?). At least we won't have to commute. It's going to be uber-strange this year as SO much has changed in the industry in the last year (and I haven't been to any meetings since April 2007), so many lenders have gotten out of student loans and layed off staff. So many friends will not be there. I can live without the receptions, parties and dinners (though they will be missed) but I hate not getting to see so many who are no longer part of the student financial aid community.

Scraptober Revision....

Okay I realize (now) I may have been a bit over ambitious with the challenge to do and post something daily so once again I am making an amendment to the challenge (again, my perrogative). Instead of daily, you will need to do something scrappy and post it 15 out of the 31 days of Scraptober. That means even though we're already five days into the month, you still have 26 to participate!

And start planning ahead for Carol's Thanksgiving Challenge:

NOVEMBER CHALLENGE
Ok I am giving you plenty of NOTICE. I think a lot of us did this last year and it might actually have been Leann's challenge but I really loved it.Starting November 1 blog everyday of one thing you are grateful for leading up to Thanksgiving day. Thanksgiving is my very favorite holiday. I am surrounded my family and friends and so very many "traditional thing" that we have done through years and even add some new ones at times.I am hoping to be able to to document these things and take a picture every day leading up to the Thanksgiving. What a great mini book it would make. You can use a calendar for the month of Nov and write something in it each day. I will happily send you a calendar page link if you are interested. I would love to see what you all come with.

HEY CAROL.....

Did you hit a Smurf???

Best Birthday in a while...

The last really good, happy, happy birthday I had would had to have been five years ago which was my last birthday with mom and spent in Missouri. What a wonderful time it was. Little did I know she would be gone a week later.

I pretty much refused to celebrate the next year. Afterall, what could top the previous year. The next year I slowly eased back into acknowledging the day. 2006 brought my 40th and several surprises--balloons (black of course) and a cool cake (even if it was in the shape of a tombstone). I spent 2007 back in Missouri--very much enjoyable but also bittersweet since mom wasn't there. And now today (or at this point, yesterday actually). It was a wonderful day spent with great friends, fantastic food, LOTS of laughs, some shopping and some scrapping. Thank you to everyone who made my birthday so special this year.

Busy, busy day....

I should have been up earlier but knew I needed the extra sleep. Now it's time to go into overdrive to pack to crop the day away at Carol's. Looking forward to having pictures to share later....

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

My coworkers...

...just came to me and wanted to know why I had not made a card for them to sign for me (for my bday)......

So many things to do...so little time...

I wanted to scrap, really scrap tonight but first I needed to print pictures. So far that's all I've accomplished...and I still have much more to go!!!

Five Years Ago Today....

miss you...

Joey working on CTMH orders....

Scrap mojo...

I'm looking at the pics I took yesterday and feeling the urge to get them printed and scrapped asap....just hope I can harness that mojo and keep it till evening when I can actually do something!!

Give yourself today challenge

Here's the challenge: The Challenge
1. Take 10 photos of your life right now... today... no ands, ifs or buts. Grab that camera and document. All day today.
2. Compile these photos into a tiny little mini album.
3. Keep or carry this album with you (in a desk drawer, where you scrapbook or in your purse) for one year.
4. Promise to glance at it every time you stumble upon it or pull it from your purse.
5. On October 1, 2009, you will make a scrapbook page about this experience, but I can't tell you exactly what that page will be about. You'll have to check back with Stacy in one year for the final piece of the puzzle.

Scraptober entry....

From Joey: As I take care of Zachary and Mikayla, I am trying to complete the pages we will do at Carol's home gathering. We will be using the Magic Moments Reflections paper pak as well as a few other goodies.

Scraptober Amendment....

Since it's my game I can change the rules when and how I see fit! Anyway, I know there are some things that just can't be helped--such as surgeries, being out of town, etc. In those instances you can do one of two things and that's get a 'pass' for that day due to your situation or you can work ahead or back to make up for any missed time. This gives you leeway to stock pile projects then post one a day!

For added fun, check out today's post on Cathy Zielske's blog---that can be a starting point for you for today! http://cathyzielske.typepad.com/my_weblog/